Summer Nights
by citrus luver
Summary: While taking Joanna to the end of summer fair, Leonard finds a little magic where he wasn't expecting... Or... A modern AU where the Enterprise is a Ferris Wheel.


**Author's Notes: **This was written for the 2014 Mckirk Secret Santa Exchange over on Tumblr for Jimkirksapple. I hope you liked it. It didn't go where I was planning it, but I still had fun writing it.

Merry Christmas!

**Summer Nights**

It was the last week of summer. There were already slight crisp autumn winds teasing the coming of colder weather.

It had been a long day at the hospital and an even longer week. As the long hand of his ancient Mickey Mouse wristwatch, the one his daddy gave him when he was a little boy, ticked by, Leonard McCoy wondered if they were even coming.

He had been disappointed so many times in the past. She had a way of breaking his heart.

He rubbed the bridge of his nose before leaning back against the hard, wooden bench. He threw his head up towards the sky. He was pleasantly surprised to see a few twinkling stars overhead despite the heavy urban air pollution and artificial lighting. He never expected to live in a bustling city. He always thought he would live a simple life in the country.

"Daddy!" A squeal took Leonard from his thoughts. It was followed by the sound of the pitter-patter of feet belonging only to a small child. The normal scowl that was becoming a permanent feature on his face morphed into a smile as he sat up.

He opened up his arms as his warm ball of joy and energy collided into his chest. He pressed a kiss to his daughter's forehead. She giggled before pushing away. "Daddy, that tickles!"

"Sorry, pumpkin."

"Leonard," the stern, no nonsense voice belonging to his ex-wife and the once love of his life cut through the happy atmosphere. His darling daughter was the only pleasant outcome of that part of his life.

The frown returned to his face as he looked past his daughter's auburn hair and up the towering, force of nature that was the now Jocelyn Treadway.

"Jocelyn." He returned the acknowledgement. Unlike a few years earlier, the bitterness and thick layer of ice that had formed between the two of them started to thaw. It was only their shared love for their now seven-year-old daughter that caused them to even try to be civil with each other. The distance had also helped to mend the wounds.

"Clay and I will be gone for the weekend," Jocelyn stated. She pulled out her cellphone from her slick black purse. Leonard noted that it was a different purse from the one she had with her just a month earlier. That was Clay's problem now, not his.

"Jocelyn," Leonard rolled his eyes. He pulled their daughter closer to his chest. She kicked her feet anxiously. "Jo and I will be fine, right?" He looked down at his sunny, bright eyed daughter. Jo flashed her kaleidoscope of greens, browns, and golds eyes, the only attribute of his that she had inherited from him, up at him.

"Yep." She beamed. "Daddy and I will have all the fun!" She gushed out.

Leonard saw the twitch form on Jocelyn's upper lip. She glanced down at her cellphone one more time. "Don't let her have too much fun; she starts school on Monday."

Jo's fake groan caused Leonard to smile. "We'll be fine. Hug Mommy 'goodbye', Jo." Leonard loosened his grip around Jo's squirming body. She jumped down from his lap and briefly hugged Jocelyn around her legs. Jocelyn wrapped a single arm around Jo's tiny body before Jo pulled away. With that Jocelyn turned on her heels and disappeared into the crowd.

"Ready?" Leonard asked. The mere presence of his daughter had chased the tiredness away.

Jo bounced on the balls of her feet excitedly. "Yes!"

Leonard smiled before standing up. Jo gave him her hand excitedly as they walked towards shiny, colorful lights. The closer they got; the more excitedly Jo became as they blended in with the crowd that were all converging towards the entrance of the end of summer carnival. The familiar upbeat music that seemed to transcend the generations wrapped around them.

The way Jo's face lit up the moment they walked through the entrance which made Leonard smile. It had been a long time since he saw Jo so happy.

To keep that happiness on her face was really the only reason why he was currently in line to ride the Klingon Bird of Prey.

Jo was bouncing on the balls of her heels as they slowly advanced in the long line. "It's going to be amazing Daddy," she gushed out. At that moment the piercing screams from the current riders overhead deafened the air.

Really, he and Joanna needed to talk about the definition of the word 'amazing'.

Two hours later, Leonard was completely nauseated, and Jo was still bouncing on the balls of her feet. "Next one, Daddy. Next one." She tugged on his hand.

"Jo, how about we pick a smoother ride?" Leonard asked. His stomach was flipping more than even the day he got married or when Jo was born in the back of his daddy's old pickup truck.

He saw Jo stick out her lower lip for a moment. "But those are all for babies." He remembered fondly the days when she wanted to ride the carousel in the mall over and over again.

"Jo."

Jo let out an exaggerated sigh. "Can we ride that?" Jo asked impishly. Jo pointed to the distance. Leonard took a step back. He didn't even know how he missed it. There looming over the carnival and towering over all the rides was a large Ferris wheel. In the center of the massive wheel, in large silvery white lights were the words 'USS Enterprise'.

"Okay Jo." At least he wouldn't get motion sickness.

It became clear after standing in line that the ambience surrounding around this ride was different from the other rides. Unlike the other rides where dramatic music and warning signs were plastered over the makeshift wooden beams, this one had videos on humanity's space exploration playing on loop with visuals of the marvels of space like supernovas, red dwarfs and gas giants.

By the time they finally reached the front of the line Jo was begging for a telescope and a trip to the observatory. From the conversations around them, it was clear Jo wasn't the only one.

In fact his stomach had even calmed down. However as Jo pushed through the turn style, Leonard felt his stomach drop. The Ferris wheel was massive. It was taller than any other ride they had ridden all night. Hell, he was certain it might just be the tallest Ferris wheel in the world. He was almost certain it was tall even to actually send them to those places that were playing on repeat.

"Sir?" A voice jolted him from his thoughts. "Sir?" He looked up and found the owner of that voice. He faltered for a moment at the sight before him. A man with short blonde hair and soul shatteringly blue eyes was standing next to Jo. He had a concerned look on his face. He looked young, so god damn young.

"Daddy doesn't like heights," Jo explained.

The stranger nodded. "That's too bad. She's a really beauty. Really smooth too... And..." He smiled. "You're in for a real treat." His blue eyes sparkled mischievously. "Besides... I won't let anything happened. You're in good hands."

Leonard rolled his eyes. The kid was a smooth talker. He marched forward and watched as he boosted Jo into the carriage. He decidedly didn't take the kid's hands when he offered his help. However when the kid smiled at them before shutting and locking the door, Leonard did feel his heart beat a little faster, but he wasn't going to say anything about that.

Leonard wasn't sure if it was just he hadn't been on a Ferris wheel in a long time or if this one was different, but he swore their carriage swung more than normal, went farther up and faster than normal. "Daddy, look!" Jo exclaimed. She tugged on the hem of his jacket.

"In a second," Leonard muttered. He was decidedly not looking down or anything like that. He opened his eyes to first loud bang in the sky. An explosion of reds, yellows, blues and greens ignited the night sky. He smiles fondly. This must have been the surprise the kid had mentioned. Leonard was sure they were on the ride longer than they supposed to. When they exited their carriage, the blond hair kid was smiling at them. "Enjoy the show?"

"Yes!" Jo answered excitedly. The kid smiled fondly and expectedly at him.

"Thanks," Leonard muttered as he walked past the kid, who immediately broke into a large grin. Leonard noted as he took Jo's hand that his eyes seemed to radiate a thousand shades of blue. They reminded him of the swimming hole he frequented when he was a little boy during the hot Georgina summer.

XXXXXXX

Maybe Leonard should have noticed that something was amiss when for the next two nights Jo insisted on going back to the fair. And maybe every time Jo said she wanted to ride of the 'Enterprise', Leonard found of his heart skip a little faster. The blond kid was always there manning his post without a fault.

It was the last night of summer and the last night of the fair when it happened. Leonard McCoy knew all the statistics. He worked at the hospital. He had treated his share of children who had been injured due to a split second's negligence. He knew it only took a second for a child to disappear. He just never thought it would happen to him. He was always careful when it came to his daughter.

"Jo!" Leonard finally felt the beating of his heart die down when he saw Jo appear through the crowd. However when he noticed that her hand was being held by another, it suddenly sped up.

Just as he was about to push through the crowd, Leonard recognized the owner of that hand. When Jo reached his side, she looked guilty and sheepish, only then did Leonard's heart stop pounding so fast. "Jo, don't run away like that," Leonard scolded. He rarely scolded her. She was always an obedient child.

"Sorry, Daddy..." She muttered.

He looked up at the blond kid. "I... I don't even know how to thank you." Leonard rubbed the back of his neck. "Don't even know your name."

The kid laughed that full belly laugh that Leonard had grown to love.

_God, when had that happened? _

Tiny wrinkles formed around the corner of his eyes.

"It's no bother. I found her..." His voice trailed off suddenly before he smiled again. "It's Jim, Jim Kirk," he finished sunnily.

"McCoy, Leonard McCoy," Leonard responded. "And this is..."

"Joanna..." Jim finished. "She's a smart kid. She was naming all the constellations in the sky for me."

Jo beamed sunnily. "Yeah, yeah she is," Leonard pulled Jo close. The anger and fear that he had built up inside his chest faded away. "She wants to be an astronaut."

Jim smiled; however, it was a sad and a distant sort of way. Leonard was tempted to ask what was wrong.

"Daddy can name all the bones in your body," Jo piped up.

"Really?"

Leonard rolled his eyes. It was a game he played with Jo when she was a little girl. He couldn't believe she still remembered. "Yes."

"Jo was telling me you haven't tried the funnel cakes yet. They are to die for!" Jim gushed. "I'm off shift right now. Care to join me?"

"I think..." Leonard started. The words died as Jo tugged on his pant legs, and Jim looked at him expectedly. Tomorrow Jo would be going back to Jocelyn and Clay, and his life would return to that monotonous life. Jim would... Leonard didn't know where Jim would go. It had been a long time since he shared a meal with someone. At the hospital, he always locked himself in his office during lunch time.

"Okay, but I'll pay."

The smile on Jim's face faltered for a moment.

"As thank you for bringing Jo back," Leonard quickly finished.

Jim nodded. "In that case, okay then."

Jim led them past all the shinning lights, the crowds, and the music to a part of the fair that was secluded from everything. It was a part of a fair that they hadn't explored during their three nights here. Leonard was surprised this hidden oasis even existed.

He was walking with his hands pillowed behind his neck. The low level lighting cast a light shadow on his angular chin. Leonard took a breath that he didn't realize he had been holding. He looked like a god, personified.

"Here okay?" Jim's voice jolted him out of his thoughts. Jim grinned at him. A large cocky smile formed on his lips. Jo was already bouncing on the balls of her feet as she hung on to the back of a chair. There were low hanging lanterns everywhere.

"Yeah," Leonard nodded his head.

A waiter came by with menus and glasses of water. Leonard looked expectedly up at Jim. The kid shrugged. "You don't look like a funnel cake kind of guy." He explained easily.

Leonard rolled as his eyes. Upon looking at the menu he was pleasantly surprised by the choices. It wasn't anything like the carnival food that was sold under the lime lights. "This isn't part of the main attractions is it?"

"Nope, Pike thinks we'll all need triple bypass surgery if we keep eating that stuff."

"You shouldn't be telling your customers that."

Jim grinned. "Thought you were smarting than that," Jim looked sheepishly over at Jo who grinned at him. "Bones." He added playfully.

Leonard choked on his drink. "Bones?"

"Thought you were going to name all bones in your body for me? Joanna says you're quite good at it. Besides you don't seem like a 'Leonard'."

Leonard looked over at Jo. He saw the smile forming on her lips. It reminded him so much of Jocelyn when they were younger, better days that no longer existed.

"Sure. There's the …"

Hours later, after their dinners had long been consumed and Leonard did try a bite of the funnel cake. They were sipping glasses of iced teas as they stared at the sparkling lights in the river. There was a warm sensation in the pit of Leonard's stomach, one that he hadn't felt in a long time especially due to someone that wasn't Jo.

"What do you do, Jim?" Leonard asked. He twirled the tip of his straw between his fingers. It was obvious from their conversations that Jim was brilliant and operating the 'Enterprise' wasn't Jim's only career.

"Daddy, Jim runs the Enterprise," Jo chided as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Jim laughed. "Sure do, isn't she a beauty? Been running her since I was sixteen-years-old."

Leonard raised an eyebrow. Jim laughed. "I once had a friend who could do that. It drove me crazy." Leonard noted the far off glaze in Jim's eyes. Leonard noted it was similar to the expression he had given when Jo mentioned had spontaneous desire to be an astronaut. "But no, I'm a law student, going to take the bar soon." He didn't seem excited though.

Jo groaned to Leonard's mortification. His face turned an even brighter red when Jim tilted his head towards Jo. "You don't like lawyers?"

Jo shook her head. "Daddy doesn't," she answered in the candid that only a child could possess.

"Jo!" He gasped out. "I'm so sorry. It's my ex-wife. She's…"

"A lawyer…" Jim answered easily. He waved his hands easily. "That's too bad." He didn't sound sorry though. He smiled so easily that Leonard felt uneasy. It suddenly felt hotter that than ever. "I… I'm going to get us some more tea. Jo…"

She pulled a face at him. Jim's smile only got wider. He quickly escaped. At that moment, he decided this kid would be the death of him, and he wasn't all that sure he minded.

The line at the food stand was longer now. Leonard noted that all the other patrons were wearing similar uniforms to the one Jim was. However, they were three different shades, the gold that Jim wore, and then there was blue and red. He wondered if he should ask Jim if there was any meaning behind them.

After spending too long in line, Leonard collected their drinks. As he made his way back to Jim and Jo, he noticed that they were hunched across the table. They seemed to be planning the secrets to taking over the world. Just as Leonard was about to call out to them, he caught the tail end of Jo's words: 'I just want Daddy to be happy again'. He felt his breath caught, and the coward inside of him prevented him from approaching.

He saw Jim's blue eyes darken. He watched him grip Jo's hands. Whatever Jim said to her, the smile that Leonard used to love and was rarely on her face any more slowly appeared. She brushed away her tears and nodded.

Jim looked up and smiled. "Bones!" He waved his hands. Leonard nodded and walked back to them.

They finished their drinks in relative silence. Both Jo and Jim were more subdued. It was when Jo was yawning and her eyes were starting to flutter shut that Leonard glanced down at his watch. It was almost midnight; the last train back to his apartment had long departed. "My place is nearby," Jim started. The kid seemed to always know what to say.

"I…"

"I have a spare room." Jim continued.

"It's just…" Leonard waved his hand in the general direction of Jo.

"She starts school tomorrow, right?"

Leonard nodded.

"She told me it's nearby. She… you…" Jim fumbled his words. He turned a bright shade of pink before looking down. He looked cute.

"Okay." Leonard nodded.

Jim's smile returned. Leonard picked up his daughter while Jim collected their trash. He waited as Jim threw it away. He watched as he jogged back to them.

"Thank you." Leonard started.

Jim cocked his head questionably.

"For… earlier when she ran off. Then…" Leonard pulled his daughter closer. "She's been having a hard time, since her mother and I…"

Jim nodded. That same sad smile appeared on his lips. Once again Leonard wished he could ask why Jim seemed so sad when he mentioned certain things. He suddenly wished he could take away the kid's demons and everything else. "I understand…" Jim muttered. It was so quiet that Leonard barely heard it. "She ain't the only one that's sad." The implication lingered in Jim's words.

That implication lingered as they entered Jim's flat, and Jim led him into spare room. Leonard placed his daughter on the bed. He tucked her in like he used to when she was a little girl. He brushed back her long curls and planted a tiny kiss on her forehead. She smiled before snuggling deeper into the bed. Leonard pulled away and found Jim leaning against the doorway, a faraway smile on his face. His eyes twinkled in the night. Suddenly, all thought of the late hours disappeared, and it seemed the same held true for Jim.

"Care for a drink?"

"Okay."

**_Fin_**


End file.
